I can't speak highly enough of this book. It's the first book in the His Dark Materials series. Read it if you can get your hands on a copy of the book. It's an amazing story that's set in an alternate Earth much like our own but different in ways that are untterly captivating. This is not a book just for young tweens. Adults will enjoy the tale as well. If you enjoy sci-fi or fantasy or good story, you should read this book. This book is being made into a film so now would be a good time to read the tale.

This book was specifically written to undermine children's Christian World views. He targets children at an age when mature discernment abilities have not yet been reached. His books talk about killing an Angel that states he is God. He takes scripture and twists it into pervertedness. I would not recommend reading this book unless you want to read the book in order to know what is in the book in order to combat his methods of attempting to destroy God in the minds of his readers.

I read this book in the sixth grade and I loved it to pieces. I gave it to everyone I knew and they loved it as well. It's magical, it's deep, and it builds vocabulary in young ones. It's science fiction for people who don't really like science fiction. It asks a number of questions and pulls readers in quickly-- a trait any good novel should have. It's great-- read it!

A lavish fantasy, this book is the first one in a series, and is a recommended reading for some school systems, but its certainly on a pretty adult level (think Chronicles of Narnia).

This book is said to have been the one that should have hit big - the "next Harry Potter". I have to say, I don't agree with that exalted review, but I did still like the book. A bit complex for very young readers, but a good prospect for pre-teens to adults. Now a major motion picture.

From the BACK COVER: It was no ordinary life for a young girl: living among scholars in the hallowed halls of Jordan College and tearing unsupervised through Oxford's motley streets on mad quests for adventure. But Lyra's greatest adventure would begin closer to home, the day she heard hushed talk of an extraordinary particle. Microscopic in size, the magical dust - found only in the vast Arctic expanse of the North - was rumored to possess profound properties that could unite whole universes. But there were those who feared the particle and would stop at nothing to destroy it. Catapulted into the heart of a terrible struggle, Lyra was forced to seek aid from clans, gyptians, and formidable armored bears. and as she journeyed into unbelievable danger, she had not the faintest clue that she alone was destined to win, or to lose, this more-than-mortal battle."

There's something about the golden age of scifi that really appeals to me, and this story hearkens back to that era. There's a romance to it. It took me a few chapters to get into it, but the strength and stubbornness of the central character, the child Lyra, finally sucked me in. I'm told this volume is much better than the other two, but I'm more than willing to find out for myself. It's been awhile since I've had a book keep me up past my bedtime.

This is a wonderful novel, although a bit slow in the beginning. Not for young children, except as pure fantasy, but the secondary levels really make the reader think about what is good, what is evil, and can power for power's sake ever be good? At the end, it is obvious that even good intentions taken to extremes don't necessarily result in good endings. It left me definitely wanting to read the rest of the story.

DO NOT BE FOOLED! Our family listened to the audio of The Golden Compass and The Subtle Knife - enjoying the action, while still having an uncomfortable feeling in the gut. When we got to the third book in the trilogy, The Amber Spyglass - we stopped listening. For the Christian - this is NOTHING SHORT OF BLASPHEMY. The entire series is about "killing God" in the author's own words. The third book in the worst - but all are bad....trying to set the trap to ensnare kids into the fantasy world of believing all this stuff. No, the demons, witches, spectors and talking animals didn't freak us out. It was the out-and-out lies of an athiest author that turned us off. So, IF YOU ARE CHRISTIAN....DON'T BOTHER WITH THIS SERIES.

Great book. Easy read. Interesting and different story. I can see this being the next Lord of the Rings type movie. Hard to believe its Young Adult (ahem..in my 40s)...more sophisticated than the Harry Potter books.

Loved the whole series! Will be a movie soon.

The first book in a Young Adult trilogy that was really great.

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If you enjoy young adult fantasy, you will love The Golden Compass. Pullman takes you on a journey that makes you keep turning the pages.

The book is well written and certainly grabs the imagination. I'm saving the trilogy for my grandaughters to read.

After watching the movie (which I thought was kind of dull), I tried out reading the books. The first book is better than the movie, by quite a bit, but still at times it felt like it was "work" to read. The second book was even worse and then the third book I skipped most of it. The first book is worth reading the second and third are not.

I saw the movie before I even realized there was a book. And, while I enjoyed the movie, I enjoyed the book much more.

A literary treat for those who enjoy a little sci-fi/fantasy.

Pretty boring. This doesn't even begin to compare to Harry Potter at all.

This is the best of the Dark Materials books, but I still found it problematic. Character motivations are erratic at best, for example. Perhaps as a kid's book, but I wasn't all that impressed.

How anyone could compare this world to Narnia is beyond me. I found it sad. Pullman seems bitter.

An amazing start to the His Dark Materials trilogy, which follows the young girl Lyra as she searches for her kidnapped friend and ultimately becomes the center of a cosmic struggle.

First of a trilogy and my favorite of the three. The second is darker and the third, while it does wrap up the details, is VERY anti-religion and seems to be full of the author's "issues". These are not as apparent in the first two books. Just a caveat.

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